Karl Toko Ekambi of Cameroon celebrates his first goal during the Africa Cup of Nations Cameroon vs Gambia January 29, 2022 at Japoma Stadium.
Cameroon are through to the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations after Karl Toko-Ekambi secured a 2-0 win against Karl Toko-Ekambi on Saturday (29 January) in the hosts' first game at the tournament since the deadly scramble Gambia had led Yaoundé.
French-born Lyon striker Toko-Ekambi scored twice in eight minutes early in the second half, prompting ecstatic celebrations in Douala.
His goals were just a reward for Cameroon, who utterly dominated against a Gambian side competing in their first ever Cup of Nations.
“They sat back and gave us a hard time and their goalkeeper made some great saves in the first half but we came back in the second half, scored the goals and made it and now we're proud to be in the semis to be. final," said Toko-Ekambi.
Cameroon marches on to a round of 16 showdown with either Egypt or Morocco as they continue their quest for a sixth continental title, while reaching the quarter-finals was an exceptional feat for The Gambia.
"We lost to the new African champions today," said their coach Tom Saintfiet.
“We hope to bounce back in future AFCONS. We have learned a lot and will be stronger in the future.”
The host country's first and only visit to the country's economic capital during the tournament meant there would always be a hectic atmosphere in this chaotic city as fans poured into the 50,000-seat Japoma Stadium.
The Indomitable Lions had not been on the field since Monday's tragic clash ahead of their game against Comoros in Yaounde, a disaster that left eight dead and 38 injured.
Security has been strengthened
Authorities here have massively stepped up their security operations on the ground to avoid a repeat.
Army officers with rifles stood atop buildings lining the route to the stadium, while large numbers of police patrolled the streets and guarded the entrances.
Cameroon's sports minister announced a series of measures on the eve of the game to avoid a repeat of the Olembe disaster.
These included stopping the distribution of free tickets and banning children under the age of 11 from participating in games.
The minister also urged fans to arrive earlier and Japoma's gates opened five hours before kick-off.
That meant the deafening roar of the vuvuzelas filled the air long before the Cameroonian team arrived, dancing their way from the bus to the dressing room, pausing only briefly for the silence in memory of the crush's victims.
The coronavirus restrictions put in place for AFCON have capped attendances at a maximum of 60 per cent of capacity, but that will be increased to 80 per cent when the host country plays and the official attendance here was 36,259.
Cameroon were the clear favorites against tiny Gambia, although Toni Conceicao's side had struggled to beat Comoros, another AFCON debutant forced to play an outfield player in goal.
In the home camp, some doubts should have arisen at half-time after the first 45 minutes had been mastered without a breakthrough.
Vincent Aboubakar, Cameroon's captain and top scorer of the tournament, headed just wide just after the half-hour and saw another shot from point-blank range blocked by Gambian goalkeeper Baboucarr Gaye.
But the opening goal came just five minutes into the second half when superb right-back Collins Fai crossed and Toko-Ekambi nodded into the far corner.
The vuvuzelas came out and the crowd were back on their feet after 57 minutes as the impressive Martin Hongla sent a low ball over Toko-Ekambi's goal to score his fifth goal of this AFCON with vigor.
Aboubakar is the only player with more at six and together they have scored all of Cameroon's goals to date.
Subject to confirmation by the Confederation of African Football, Cameroon will now return to Olembe for Thursday's semi-finals and possibly next Sunday's final.
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